From The Publisher: November 2015

11/06/2015 08:49AM
● Published by Aimee Cormier

Cutting Through The Mud

By Art Suberbielle

As I write this column just a few days before the primary election, the political mud-slinging is in high gear. Can you remember the “good old days” when candidates seeking office would actually communicate what their plans are when elected and discuss their personal qualifications? But instead we are in the era of high-paid political consultants whose sole mission is to discredit the opponent in any means possible. Today we are bombarded on every side with one negative ad after the other. If all that you heard was actually the truth, there would probably be few, if any, candidates left worthy of your vote.

This mud-slinging makes our job as voters all the more difficult. We have to actually wade through these half-truths and distorted facts to determine who to support. Crafty consultants pull selected phrases out of context and use less-than-flattering photos of opponents to cast them in the worse possible light. With all this negative energy expended, is there any wonder why the general public holds politicians in such low regard?

Even faced with all of these daunting possibilities, there are still some notable individuals who step forward and seek public office, motivated by the desire to improve our status quo. When you read this, Louisiana voters will be faced with choosing from two remaining candidates for governor in the general election on November 21. Our state is facing many difficult challenges in the next 4 years, including huge budget shortfalls, crumbling infrastructure and finding new ways to properly fund education and health care. Please do not miss this opportunity to make your voice heard. Vote for the candidate you feel will best serve our entire state. There’s certain to be other offices in run-off elections at this same time, so make your vote count in these as well.